


Baked Goods

by Cutelily05



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-13
Updated: 2017-12-17
Packaged: 2018-08-30 19:29:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8546203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cutelily05/pseuds/Cutelily05
Summary: Peeta Mellark, a struggling owner of the once successful Mellark restaurant franchise wants to bring back his family legacy and a new hire to the restaurant, Katniss is not going to hurt either.





	1. Chapter 1

**So yeah, we are getting a new story out and I am not even going to try to apologise for the delay of my updates. Life is hectic and once situation settles, I will try to get back on track. Hey, lets get back to the story.**

**Baked Goods**

_Peeta Mellark_

_Mellark Bakeries and Restaurants_

_Panem_

I flip the card in my hand once, twice till I am standing in front of the restaurant staring at the entrance of the board hanging on top of it reading 'Mellarks Restaurant' written in cursive. I take a deep sigh and push the door open and the door chimes open indicating me arriving there.

"Oh goodie,a customer" A red-headed man smiles looking at me. "Oh please do come in. Business has been slow lately. I will be back with your order right now" he smiles at me adjourning me to an open seat to an apparently empty bakery/restaurant.

"Oh, no you have been mistaken, I came to meet Peeta Mellark"

"Oh so you are the new hire. Let me get him. Stay right here. I will be back" the man says leaving me alone in that, dark place?

Even though the time is just around 4 in the evening, the interiors are dimly lighted and the place doesnt exactly give a very impressive look either. It does not have a charm to attract the people towards it,which is something so important according to Effie Trinket, my professor.

I hear the door banging and a young man, a couple inches taller than me standing, his hands folded in front of him. His blonde hair is tousled and his blue eyes are blood shot otherwise a very dark hue of blue, so contrasting to the blue eyes Prim had.

"I told you to not let anyone today, Darius. I am not having a time right now."

"But Haymitch had summoned her..."

"I really need to have some words with him. Now will you escort her out"

I am already being sent out before I have even said my name. What a great beginning.

* * *

"Sweetheart he is not having a good time now. I sent you because, well, lets just face it, you are the person who does not take any crap from others and that is what I want to deal with Peeta"

"But our meeting just lasted 30 seconds, Haymitch and honestly, your godson is really a..."

"A what? I get it sweetheart. You know how hard it is to lose a parent. At least you have gotten your sister but that was not his case. I thought that you understood his pain than I do"

I actually considered that when I came home and told Prim about the briefest meeting I had with Prim and she advised me that all he wanted was comfort and he was going through a lot of pain right now and they tend to come out more cold hearted, pretty much like me but that was not my business. Mine was to help their cooking stuff and planning it. Maybe accepting Haymitch's offer was a bit over board.

Well let me lay out the facts.

Haymitch Abernathy, was my mother Lilian Everdeen's brother. A rich one for the matter. Only heir to the Abernathy Medical company which was later sold. However Haymitch has tons of money to last him decades in his posh, luxurious apartment. God knows why he could not hire an helper to clean the mess he makes.

Well,long story short, after my grandparents, whom I have no knowledge of, disowned their daughter for bringing disgrace for their family and my mom moving out and being with my father and accepting the live of an average middle class woman, and losing my father to an accident, my mom slipping into depression later handling the responsibility of raising myself and Prim life under her brother, took the extreme step.

Haymitch wanted a good life for his nieces and made me choose culinary, out of all the available options. I could not cook to save my life. Bread with butter and jam, mac and cheese was the closest thing I have cooked. However, it grew upon me and before I knew it, I was experimenting with a vast varieties of cuisines from around the world and became the apple of Effie's eye which was a very difficult task to accomplish.

When Haymitch decided to mess with my already screwed up life by introducing Peeta Mellark.

Peeta Mellark is the only living heir to Mellark chain of bakeries and restaurants. It seems that he lost his family to the car accident which he survived with just losing his leg. The day I saw Haymitch cry.

Soon the once famous Mellark bakery legacy started disappearing after the death of the Mellarks. Peeta was young and inexperienced and dealing with the personal loss had taken the toll on him that slowly, the other branches of the Hotel and the Bakery were shut down. Except for one. The bakeries lost their once famous charm.

Haymitch could not let his godson rot like this and waste his life as apparently he had treated him like his son nevertheless and it actually surprised me that he could love someone like that.

So after my graduation, when he approached me with the idea that I help him rebuild the restaurant by bringing him back from the depression he is in, I accepted it because, Haymitch is after all my uncle, had accepted to raise me and Prim, send us to college and he is so much like me. He could be anti-social but this was something he had asked me, as a favour.

But Peeta Mellark was so much worse than I expected him to be.

After the incident that he pushed me out of the hotel, I had an instant urge to get in and rip is head off for the words he had said to the waiter guy but I restrained myself because I had gone through the terrible phase just like he did and I did say some pretty nasty things.

"She is not big nor particularly pretty."

Douche bag

"Hello, Sweetheart, are you there"

"Yeah Haymitch"

"Do it for me again. I have already talked to him so that he would do anything if you asked him right now. Don't try to push up too much out of his purse. I need you to build it up just as it was before. I trust you sweetheart"

"Okay I will meet him tomorrow"

"By the way, he apologised for something he said. Good night, Sweetheart" he says and hung up the phone.

But Peeta said those words after I had left. How could he probably apologise for that?

But no matter what, I decide that Peeta was not a bad guy after all.

* * *

When I enter there the next morning, the red-headed waiter is there from before. He is drinking coffee from a cup while scrolling down in his phone. The chime of the door interrupts him and he turns and looks at me.

"Welcome back Katherine Everdeen"

"Well it is Katniss actually"

"Oh Kateniss"

"No Katniss" I correct him again

"You know what,I will just stick with Kat. Peeta's waiting for you. Peeta" he calls out and he once again comes out. This time, I take a full look at him and I actually notice how I have failed to notice how attractive he looks. Medium height, blonde hair, dark blue eyes which is no longer bloodshot and a well built body with muscles flexing from his black shirt he is wearing. His jaw is well built which has a light stubble covering it and his hair is curling on his forehead which looks desperate for an haircut.

"Peeta Mellark" he says extending his arm towards me and when I accept it, it is rough and calloused but somehow warm and soft and I want to hold it a bit longer but I give it a firm shake and release it. I introduce myself to him

We sit down and an awkward air settle between us. Soon the red-haired guy joins us

"Seems like an awful lot of tension going on here. Let me break it. I am Darius. Cook of the Mellark Bakeries and restaurant"

"You're a cook." I ask him more like a question than of a statement.

"Yeah. You know you are not the only cook in this place. All of us are pretty awesome if you ask me. Anyways so let us start from scratch. What plans do you have in improving this place" he asks pointing the whole place which looks eerily empty and gives off an almost cold look.

"Honestly I have no idea. I don't know where to start from"

"How about I tell something which involves my restaurant"

"We did not mean to offend you"

"Sure you did not"

"Why are you like this man. Relax. Remember what Haymitch told" Darius tells trying to diffuse the tension.

"Okay. What do you suggest " Peeta says looking at me.

"Uh, I said I have no idea"

"Well, you can work here for sometime until you figure out to do something. You can help Darius and I will pay you" he says getting up and leaves without giving us a second glance. Maybe he was not as good as I thought. While Haymitch, Haymitch of all persons care about improving his place, he seems least bothered.

"Kat I know that I know you for only some minutes now but do you mind if could catch up for a glass of wine in the evening"

* * *

I spot Darius in the bar talking to some people in the bar smiling and his grin is boyish that it seems like a chick magnet from the looks he is getting from girls near him. When he spots me, he calls me over. We are sitting near the bartenders table and he orders me a cocktail while I take a seat next to him.

"Sooo" I drag

"How much has Haymitch told you about Peeta"

"Well there was an accident and his family was killed and that Peeta was struggling to keep up the place"

"True. Listen to me carefully. Did you look at that place. No one works there anymore. Peeta is hesitant to take up the position. He did go to college and master culinary and business but the death has taken a toll on him, especially Delly's, so he seems a bit closed off but he was so good with others"

"Or so have I heared"

"Listen. I have been his friend for a long time and I can't let him destroy himself like this. I have thought a lot about improving the infrastructure or hiring more people to make it more, you know kind of like before and Peeta deserves it... "

Suddenly it strikes me. That is what he needs. We must start from the beginning.

"I got it. I know what to do"

"But I had like a whole speech prepared on what I must tell you"

"But I know what to do"

"Alright" he says giving a hard look, almost suspiciously

"We must start from the scratch" I mirror his words from before for which he furrows his eyebrows even more

"I must call Effie" I say and go ahead in my thoughts leaving poor Darius looking at me helplessly

* * *

Few days after I had contacted every person from the list Effie gave me, I take them to the restaurant. When I asked Darius where Peeta was, he said that he said he would be coming in late today which makes it more perfect because I did not want them to feel helpless staying here not knowing anything and having a hard time explaining to Peeta what was exactly going on.

Darius gives me a broad satisfied grin. I smile back at him and then I hear the door chime and Peeta comes in and his eyes go wide looking at the crowd gathered inside. His eyes flit from one face to another until they lock onto mine.

"Are they customers?" he asks

"No we are the new cooks of your restauant" replies Finnick

**I know that the end is rather abrupt but I promise to extend it sometime, whenever I get time. Actually I myself personally hate it but if time permits, I will rewrite it. And I know there is no Everlark in this but we will eventually get to that point.**

**Too much, too less. Let me know. As always PM/fav/follow and have a nice day :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Katniss POV

"My what?" he half exclaims, half shouts. Mostly shouting.

"Yeah, he doesn't seem that excited, is he Brainless" Johanna asks.

"What is going on here Katniss. Tell me that this is a joke"

"May I have a word with you Peeta" I say and don't even wait for his permission as I pull his arm and take him away from the others.

"Listen Peeta, I struggled so much for putting this team together. Please bear with me and listen to my plan" but by the looks of it, he is more interested in knowing who those strange people are than the plan I have. I see him trying to roll his eyes but I do not release the hold on his arm.

"Okay, so after I looked at the condition of the hotel, I called my professor Effie who suggested some methods. She said a new makeover and fresh faces would do good and thanks to her influence, I managed to scrap up this group and they will work as new chefs here helping you in putting this hotel back together"

"How am I to pay them? I am really not going to pay for some people who cook for no one"

"Listen to the entire story" I urge him, almost plead him because if he dismisses this at this moment, all the effort I've taken during the course of the few weeks would just go down the drain.

"All of them are rich enough or have another part time job to support themselves. You need not pay them for the first two months they will be working here and if you really feel bad, they would take commission money from the New Years party in the Heavensbee office"

"Wha commission, office, party, what?" he shakes his head slightly and I instantly regret my life decisions. What have I gotten myself under with this boss and then I realise that all these are my ideas. I must have consulted with him before springing it suddenly onto him.

"Well look. Johanna over there" I point to the short haired woman talking to Finn with extravagant expressions "Has an uncle who owns the Heavensbee companies of business who are hosting the New Year's party and want catering and the buffet service which we would be providing. It is a great step they have taken and would give us the boost that we need. Many rich businessmen would be there and they could just get the word out about our food, hopefully" I say my voice starting to sound from so confident dropping to so scared just in the matter of seconds. Maybe I have to give more thoughts to my half-baked plan because this is not the expression that I had expected from him. I expected a little bit of enthusiasm from him but the look on his face looks like I had just told him that the world ends in five seconds.

"Did you even think this through, Katniss"

"I did" Johanna says suddenly materialising out of nowhere and crosses her arms across her chest sporting a very, very bored look.

''Even Plutarch is okay with it. You think through the plan Breadboy. The day is just a month away and we don't even have a stocked kitchen. Get it moving, we have some shopping to do'' she says and skips around.

"What if I don't want it. And this is supposed to be a surprise." Peeta says throwing up his arms in the air.

"Too bad we already accepted it" Finnick says and loops his arm with Johanna and usher the others inside.

"Think Mellark" Johanna says slapping him on the back before exiting the room leaving me and Peeta alone, not before asking me in a not so polite way to attend the shopping as Gale, who was writing the necessary items was done.

"Do whatever you want. No one is giving me the opportunity to do anything and all I need was another woman to take over my life, again" he huffs and takes his coat and exits the bakery.

I look at him and after my sloth-like brain processes what he had told, I feel bad. Haymitch once mentioned me that Mrs Mellark, Peeta's mother was not the kindest woman and dominated the franchise and was devoted to the bakery and... was not too good to her children, even abused them and the other woman he told was, his mother. Who had controlled his life.

"Yo Brainless, you coming or not" Johanna calls out.

"Yeah" I call out my voice suddenly so low and so unsure.

* * *

"I screwed it up Darius. What should I do? I did not even bother to call him."

"Hang on let me check up on him"

"Thank you" I say and hang up. Stupid, stupid move. Now Peeta hates me completely. In the two months I have known him and the times I have tried to engage him in conversations, under Prim's order, it was always met with mono-syllabic words and the full blown out conversation we had in the last couple of months had to end up in an argument. Great.

But I don't have time to wallow in my self pity because it is stupid considering the mistake in my side and the ringing phone after 10 minutes calls for my attention. I answer the phone to a very hesitant sounding Darius.

"Umm, Katniss, there is a situation with Peeta. He is actually at Haymitch's house which basically means that-"

"-He is in my house" I finish for him. ''And he sounds so...drunk, so I think it is better if you let Haymitch deal with him and we could uh, maybe talk about this in the hotel tomorrow?" Even he doesn't so sure of himself.

"Okay, I'll talk to you later" I say and hang up his phone. I let the information sink inside. At least in the presence of Haymitch will Peeta actually listen to me.I hope.

I walk towards Haymitch's side of the house. Backyard facing 2nd floor room. The door is already cracked open and light is slipping through the open area. And just like the stupid I am, instead of entering the room, I eavesdrop.

"That is too drastic"

"Boy Sweetheart knows what she is doing and in this situation, something tells me that it might work out and trust me it was not easy assembling everyone. I had to talk to Effie to arrange this whole thing. And man, that woman is a piece of work"

"You spoke with Effie"

"Things did go out of hand. I'll spare you the gory details but it involved a lot of kissing" And an involuntary gasp escapes me. Haymitch and Effie. I could have never guessed. And I wrinkle my thought of that stuffy peacock with Haymitch. And it actually fills up the story. Why Haymitch had wanted me to join culinary, why Effie favoured me and accepted my demand rather quickly. Oh, And I was blind all the way. For four years.

"Ugh" Peeta says voicing my thoughts. There is a long pause and I consider entering but my mind is still in scrambles in picking up Haymitch's love affair with Effie that I stand there doing nothing temporarily forgetting the purpose of me coming there in the first place. I do not break from my trance until Peeta speaks up again

"I wish Delly was here." Ah, Delly, again. The only person I have heard Peeta talk about from his past life and no one else. He had mentioned brothers but whenever I hear it, it was Delly. He must have really loved her. Haymitch remains silent and Peeta continues.

"She was there next to me, all the time. I just can't believe that they are gone. Sometimes I wake up and feel like Delly was in the kitchen with my morning coffee and Rye was teasing me and holding my neck in a headlock." he says and again it goes silent and this time it is Haymitch is the one who speaks up.

"Sweetheart, I saw you. You lose" he says with fake enthusiasm and I freeze. _Busted_. Now there is no use of bolting and it does no good. I enter the room and both the men are sitting there each with an alcoholic drink in their hand and I can't figure out who is having what. Both the men do not look good. Disheveled, unkempt hair, an overall tiredness to their entire body. I have seen them both in different situations in different conditions but today, this is something very different. A time where both are in their most honest and weak selves.

"Care to explain your visit, Sweetheart"

"I,uh, came for a drink" I say and take a bottle from the case of beer, I guess, set on the table. I take a long sip from the bottle without looking at either of them.

"We both know that is not true. Do not try to rub it in my face" he says. "Come sit. I know you too have a story to share"

I would have immediately refused. Firstly, Peeta is a mere acquaintance and nothing more. Secondly, I am not comfortable talking about my parent's death, even if it were Haymitch. But I know Haymitch and that he is so much like me,as a person and we resemble each other in personalities. He would not talk about Maysliee's death that soon too. If he were able to do that, then me too. And I have kept it built up inside me, for so long. I do not talk about that in front of Prim but the need to tell them is compelling. They are the ones who would actually understand the pain I have felt.

I take a seat in one of Haymitch's plush chairs in the direction which makes me, Peeta and Haymitch sit in the form of a triangle.

"Mom loved Dad so love what they had for each other was just visible in their eyes." I say and take a small pause. Haymitch's eyes are trained on me. "She loved him so much that she defied her family to run off. She was satisfied with her life as a middle class woman as long as Dad stayed by her side. We might have not been rich but we lead a happy life. Dad loved us more than anything in his life. When I was eleven years, due to some workplace accident, he was killed. I was left to defend myself and guard Prim from depression which my mother was suffering from. She decided that she had enough and left me and Prim here while she committed suicide." I pause my voice cracking in the end. I turn and look at Peeta and his eyes have lost their hard look and he looks at me softly. I turn my head and catch a glimpse of Haymitch and his eyes shine with tears.

I know that he is healing from Maysilee's death but I know Mom's death hurts him just as much as it had hurt me. Mom had told me that Haymitch might be stubborn or short tempered but he fiercely loves his friends and family and can go to any extent to protect them. She was so sure that he would take us in and he did. He funded mine and Prim's college fee while feeding us. That is more than getting Prim into community house and me doing bar tending jobs to push her through Medical school.

I am eternally grateful to Haymitch. I know that and he knows that too but both of us will fully never accept the fact or acknowledge it to each other. Haymitch opens up now. "You know, I still miss them. The two girls of my life who played two great roles. Vivian had been my moral support and my partner in crime since she was small. She helped me steal cookies and never told them to our parents. She was so contrasting to me. We bickered all the time but you, know, she was my sister. I had hard time chasing the boys off the backyard. Anyways, then came Maysilee. Then she was there for me. All the time. Sometime later, I even brought a ring but she was not there to accept it. Brain tumor, they called it. When I wake up everyday, I can't shake the emptiness out of my life. Then Vivian had to leave. I was alone. I am still alone. The person I have once loved gone. My sister gone. And I haven't even said these words out loud in some time." He says and takes a sip of his drink. He looks at Peeta urging him with his eyes to continue because Haymitch, like me, hates to show their weak sides to others. Peeta clears his throat before starting.

"Let me cut straight to the chase. The more I think about it, the more it hurts. My mom, dad, Rye, Dave and Delly all were gone in the accident. They died right on front of my eye. I survived with losing my one leg which could have taken my life too." he says " Just so you did not know earlier" he says looking at me. "Even though I loved my brothers and my parents, it was Delly with whom I was most closest with. She stayed with me every step by my side to help me build this bakery and helped me hold the top position but now the thing which hurts me everyday is the fact that I had failed her. I failed to keep up her promise. I promised her that I would make the Mellarks proud and the bakeries successful. I was inexperienced to hold such a huge responsibility and now, what am I left with? Nothing. Everything is sold. The only thing I have left is the main branch which is hanging by a thin thread which could be shut down anytime now." Whatever he has to say afterwards, he doesn't say but he swallows them with another gulp of his bottle and sets it down.

"But you know" I begin. This is it. This is the moment he is the most vulnerable. This is the moment he would actually lend his ears for me to hear "Delly wouldn't want to see you in this situation. She would have wanted you to pick up your mess and mend it. If you really want to make up to her death, it is not by breaking down but by moving on and honoring their death. Do you think Delly would appreciate it if she saw you like this everyday?" I question him my voice laced with anger. If it works out, then Peeta would at least consider the option of coming back from his current state of being.

"Clearly I haven't been doing that, have I" Haymitch asks

"Well you got Effie" I say my face automatically scrunching up into disgust and Haymitch looks sly.

"But I think this is the first time I think what Sweetheart said actually made sense"

"Shut up Haymitch"

* * *

"What" I exclaim my voice going ten octaves higher that the whole bakery is staring at me

"Whoa Brainless. Keep your speaker down"

"Yeah Katniss" Peeta says and he looks a bit sheepish

I can't believe what is happening right now

"Well you abracadabra apparently worked Brainless. Some magical words and suddenly Bakerboy got all his shit together"

"I was away for just two weeks"

"It was enough time for me to take up the order"

The next day we had our revelations,Thom, my cousin rang up and informed me that he was getting married and that his fiancee was throwing a fit and that he needs me as she wants 'more girls' to help her but when I refused, he begged me so hard that I had to accept it, besides I was close with Thom. But who knew that it would extend up to a week since his fiancee couldn't find her ideal destination as they were fully booked that we had to wait until they were available and then Peeta calls me yesterday asking me to join the job immediately and that he has a surprise for me.

The conversation was pretty normal until the last line threw me off. I rushed immediately as something inside me did not trust Peeta entirely yet trusts him entirely. And they tell me that they have accepted the Plutarch Heavensbee offer and that the preparations are underway.

"But you could have consulted me" After all I put too much effort into this

"Well, surprise. Besides time is running out. Grab your coat and help me Brainless"

"But that is a lot of work and there is just a couple of weeks left"

"Guess what. We have already prepared the final list of dishes to be served for the party and are going to have final discussions with Plutarch today"

I stand there dumb stricken while the whole bakery is stumbling with life while Johanna smirks at me bemusedly. At least one person is amused by everything. I look at Peeta and he bites his lower lip looking at me expectingly. They resemble the puppy dog eyes and the light of the faint sunlight and the dim lights of the room bring out the blue color of his eyes out and I notice how his eyes have a different shade of blue than Prim's. And my second time of appreciating the beauty of his eyes. More deeper and darker. And surprisingly not filled with loneliness, depression or rage but filled with hope.

"Lets do it"

* * *

**Kinda sucks right. I wrote it at a single setting. What can I say, I wrote what came into my mind. No proof reading or anything. Just a little building up for the next step. Expect Everlark in next chapter ;)**

**Excuse me while I work on the re-writes of The Arrangement.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I know I kinda disappeared from the scene for a long time because I had found this new rabbit hole that I had fallen deep under. Don’t worry it is harmless but I don’t want to say what it is here but you can try guessing it. It has something to do with international music;) so I was concentrating too much on it that I had barely any time to concentrate over here. I haven’t forgotten this though and with the holidays approaching, I guess I could come back to the scene again.**

**Chapter 3**

**Katniss POV**

“Good Morning, Peeta”

“Good Morning, Katniss” he replies not meeting my eyes instead concentrating intently on the cupcake in front of him. His eyebrows are scrunched up, his tongue sticking out as he slightly bites it and his messy, curly hair falls on his face as he flips his hair from his face, his attention not faltering for a second.

And I find it cute.

I tried to hide it for the past a month or something but there is no denying that he is handsome and has a good personality. It took him some time to warm open up but within two days into hiring the others, I noticed that the face I saw him before that was not the real Peeta but that was the Peeta who was hurting.

But once the others came, he slowly started getting around more. Maybe he has been deprived of human contact with a large crowd for a long time but once Finnick and Gale started cracking jokes around him and joined him into their little group of guy friends along with Darius within a couple of days, I found myself one day returning to a smiling Peeta along with Finn. Although Gale takes time to accept anyone, he kinda seemed to like Peeta and get along with him.

It did not take long for me to look at how he really was. He was kind, even cracked jokes along with his employees, friendly and was fun to hand around. The other cooks would leave early to their families or part time jobs but since I was a full-time employee, I would stay back and work after all the members left.

And that marked the beginning of my crush. It started out with friendly conversations and we would try some new recipes adding our own little taste to it. We would stay in the little kitchen and eat the dishes we made. Soon, the conversations started getting deep as we discussed and opened a little about our past lives to each other. Since we had that conversation at Haymitch’s, we already feel like we knew each other and it was not hard to open to him. He always gave a small smile as encouragement whenever I mention my family and I try to do the same when he mentions his.

However, I became aware on how close we were getting. I started noticing how my eyes would be fixated on his messy hair that are messily curled on his forehead, how they look like they have been spun from gold, shining when sunlight falls on them, how his ears turn rosy due to cold and giving a blush-like appearance to his cheeks, his long eyelashes, how his muscles flex when he works and the charming smile that stays in his face all the time and the small smile that stays in his face when he works in the bakery. It is just that when he is around in his workplace, he takes on a different demeanour. His body seems more relaxed and looks comfortable and serene.

As soon I had it figured it out what it was, thanks to Prim’s sappy romance films, I did not want to invest much time thinking about it with the New Year’s party fast approaching. Deciding that my infatuation with my boss would fade away, I decided that I would not waste my precious time dwelling on the fact. Having a crush on your boss. God, I feel to cheesy, even for myself.

I remove my coat and get back to my work. Today we will be meeting Plutarch and supplying our samples because there will be a lot of high profile guests appearing and they would be expecting high class food. The Mellark reputation seems to have faded but if we under-deliver, we could risk closing the entire shop. Peeta thought it was playing with fire but Johanna gave him a pep speech and then as if something had happened, the tides changed. I was more worried about the presentation and Peeta was all ‘go big or go home’ because the more I thought about the plan, the more stupid it sounded but apparently the more they thought about it, it made sense to them. I am afraid that if this were to not go the way we had planned, the person more affected than me in this would be Peeta.

And this is why today is important. Johanna mentioned that as much as much as Plutarch loves his guests, he is kind of a fool. She assured that he tends to fall for anything if you were to put in some fancy words into it and if he were to like Peeta, he would blindly pay you the money and not even question your decisions or even taste it. He apparently trusts everyone easily and even if the party were is not to go as planned, if he likes Peeta, he would pay him, no questions asked.

However, within the short time period I’ve known Peeta, he is an extremely hardworking and an perfectionist who gives his 100 percent into anything he does and puts his heart and soul into it and we have got a great staff. He would not let anything go wrong and he is determined to sweep Plutarch off his feet today. Probably the cupcakes are for this occasion.

“Katniss, it would be nice if you could go and help Darius with the cooking part. He has been wanting a helping hand since morning and has been struggling to do everything on his own”

“Yeah, sure” I reply and tie my apron and make my way into the kitchen.

“Don’t forget, I have some cheese buns warm in the oven for you along with some hot chocolate on the counter, just the way you like” he says the last part and turns to face me. When I meet his eyes, he gives me his usual charming smile and winks at me leaving my mouth slightly hanging open as I wonder how he even knows about it. Probably Haymitch told him, that old man.

“Actually I kinda saw you eating them one day and how much you enjoyed the cheese buns as compared to the others and the other day, when I asked you what you want most at the moment, you replied by saying ‘Hot Chocolate’, so I thought maybe you would like them, you know as a combo” He looks a little sheepish with this confession. ‘Do you even remember or notice all these things’ I want to ask him but that would result in an extremely uncomfortable conversation and I would end up saying something utterly foolish. Neither flirting nor holding a conversation is my forte while he is skilled on both the fields. Hence, I hold my tongue and mutter thanks and leave. We are comfortable the way we are and I don’t want to mess it up.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Katniss, hey are you alright?”

I nod tensely not trusting my voice entirely to speak. Me,Madge and Peeta came to Plutarch Heavensbee’s office and waiting outside the conference and looking at the size of the office itself, my heart dropped to the stomach. How on Earth are we gonna feed these many people and that is not even including the guests who would be attending this. My mind went blank after that. I insisted both Peeta and Johanna that I wouldn’t come but they dragged me here. Johanna however refused saying that she wants to keep it completely professional and did not ‘nepotism’ going around. Although we very well knew that she wanted her Sunday drinking binge and wouldn’t be sober enough to attend on a Saturday. Finnick, Gale and Madge offered to bring the food while Johanna helped with the food and went home directly.

“Maybe Finnick or Gale should do this.” I tell Madge and try to get up but she pulls on my arm. Madge’s father was a mayor and she was apparently on the debate team and had a silver tongue like Peeta. They speak very well while I am a blabbering mess when I try to speak. I am more on the action side but after Peeta, I am apparently the one that is on charge around, hence they insist me being there too.

A young woman on high heels and strawberry hair pulled up into a ponytail appears in front of her, the sound of her heels being heard throughout the hallway. She speaks in a clipped and a professional tone lacking emotions in them.

“Mr.Heavensbee would like to meet you now.”

“Deep breaths, Katniss. Everything is going to be alright” Madge reassures me as she grabs my hand and literally pulls me into the room with Peeta leading the way.

We are taken into a what seems like a meeting room of some sorts. The walls are all white with no paintings or a flower vase to decorate a room. A desktop sits upon a large table with chairs being neatly arranged on opposite seats of the table. A man, plump, with short blonde hair, that looks like that it has been dyed, looks like he could be in his mid-forties sits there typing away furiously on his desktop. As soon as he spots us entering, he closes whatever he has been doing and looks at us.

“So, I guess you guys are here to discuss about the catering deal from the Mellark Bakeries and Restaurant? Well I guess Johanna didn’t tell you this but the deal is off”

 

**Well, so. How was it? I haven’t been into writing for a long time and it feels weird. Once I catch my pace, I promise to improve the quality and hopefully try to post regularly from now.**

**-Cutelily05**     

 


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